700quid, Point me in the right direction

[Xiorell]

I had a look in my LBS again and there's a lot of nice shiney stuff in there. ALL Hard-tail I might add.
Anyway, got me thinking I could actually see myself spending 700ish quid on a MTB sometime in the rear future and just using my hybrid for "Down the shops" and stuff.



So around 700 quid, what'd be a good place to start looking? Any half decent full suspension bikes out there around that figure available?

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Cube Acid, Kona Cindercone, Specialized Rockhopper.

 

[Xiorell]

Cube one looks nice.

I got a sneaking suspision I looked at one today but it may not have been. The Specialized one or a model very much like it was there too.
Then I went to play with the drop bar road bikes and got all confused by alien looking levers and stuff.

 

[Cubist]

Carrera AM Fury .... save yourself 150 quid or upgrade the fork.

Only full susser worth looking at for less than a grand will be a Carrera Banshee, well enough specc'd but a friend of Cubester's had one and it weighed a ton. Stick to hardtail at that budget. You'll get a lot of secondhand hardtail for that sort of money if you know what to look for.

 

[007fair]

Recently was in the market at this price point and was going to go for the 2011 Rockhopper for 700 But then tried a 2010 Kona Kula for 800 and was amazed at its lightness So went for that and am loving it

 

[Cubist]

Canyon have started to appear in reviews, with awesome value for money. Look at this one for 699 Euros,

http://www.canyon.com/_en/mountainbikes/bike.html?b=2051 or stretch to the Yellowstone 5.0 for an incredible deal on components for the money:
http://www.canyon.com/_en/mountainbikes/bike.html?b=2052

You won't find a spec like that on a bike for less than a grand I reckon.

 

[Xiorell]

Canyon have started to appear in reviews, with awesome value for money. Look at this one for 699 Euros,

http://www.canyon.co...ike.html?b=2051 or stretch to the Yellowstone 5.0 for an incredible deal on components for the money:
http://www.canyon.co...ike.html?b=2052

You won't find a spec like that on a bike for less than a grand I reckon.

I have to say, not knowing much about these things mind, they do look rather sexy

 

[Cubist]

They sell direct according to the comics, so you don't pay the dealer's cut on the profit. There is, therefore, the risk of buying online, but if you Google the name it should start to ring alarm bells if anyone has been let down by them.

To put it bluntly, if I were in the process of shopping for a bike at that price range, that 5.0 would take a bit of denying.

 

[Cyclist33]

http://www.nwmtb.com/productdetails.asp?productid=11962

 

[Xiorell]

They sell direct according to the comics, so you don't pay the dealer's cut on the profit. There is, therefore, the risk of buying online, but if you Google the name it should start to ring alarm bells if anyone has been let down by them.

To put it bluntly, if I were in the process of shopping for a bike at that price range, that 5.0 would take a bit of denying.

Doesn't seem to be much opinion either way. I'll keep serching though see what I can dig up

You might have an idea on this. I'm about 5ft8, maybe 5ft9. I'm thinking about an 18inch frame? My Hybrid is 20... or is it 21... anyway, that's alright riding about on the road but it is a wee bit tall when I have to put my feet down. Thinking about 18inch frame would let me chuck it around a bit more comfortabley off road

 

[Cyclist33]

damn, that marin is only cheap in the size 19 which would be too big for you.

cracking bike tho.

stu

 

[Cubist]

Doesn't seem to be much opinion either way. I'll keep serching though see what I can dig up

You might have an idea on this. I'm about 5ft8, maybe 5ft9. I'm thinking about an 18inch frame? My Hybrid is 20... or is it 21... anyway, that's alright riding about on the road but it is a wee bit tall when I have to put my feet down. Thinking about 18inch frame would let me chuck it around a bit more comfortabley off road

At your height you could ride a 16, but it would be best suited to out of the saddle gnarly stuff. MTB geometry makes a bit of a mockery out of bike fitting, simply because of all the variables with lay-back seatposts, shorter/longer stems, top tubes etc etc. An 18 would give you a bit more of a stretched feel for longer rides over bridleways etc. If you get into more technical stuff and find that it's a bit too long you can always shorten or raise the stem. A 16 may be a bit cramped for longer runs, but would, as you say, give you plenty of control if you were going to play out on it in serious fashion.


As an example, I would say that Canyon looks reasonably conventional. You won't be able to touch the floor from the saddle anyway on an 18, because of the BB clearance height, but of course that's what adjustable seatclamps are for for when you hit the technical stuff and want to get in touch with the ground occasionally......

 

[flying start]

cube acid all the way ive been in windlatter all day paid £22.50 for a all day hire top bike i must say !!!!

 

[Cubist]

cube acid all the way ive been in windlatter all day paid £22.50 for a all day hire top bike i must say !!!!

I'd have agreed with you until I found the Canyons. The Chepaer Canyon has a RockShox Recon Silver air fork, and the 5.0 has a Reba Dual Air. Cube Acid has good spec, looks great, but is lumbered with a Dart 3 fork iirc.

 

[Xiorell]

I'll be tempted by the Canyon 5, from my google reserch it does seem to be really well specced, 750ish quid is about the price point!